OISIN DAVISstirs with the stars:
MISS PANTI'sValentine Cupcakes
As Alternative Miss Ireland – by far the most glamorous of annual Irish pageants – nears its final hurrah, compere Miss Panti is certainly keeping up appearances.
“I’ve had three different gowns specially made [for the event]. One is best described as space glamour, and the other two will have a more old-school black-and-white movie, monochromatic look to them.” Contestants beware. You definitely need to up your game.
Valentine’s Day, however, is a slightly more dressed-down affair, with every pun intended.
Panti’s ideal Valentine’s meal is breakfast on February 15th. But should any aspiring handsome studs really want to impress Panti with a three-course culinary feast, there should be calamari to start, a Japanese dish called Katsudon as a main and a freshly made apple crumble for dessert.
Or if you want to go all out, you could make some of these divine little cupcakes she's become so fond of after becoming a fan of the BBC TV show, The Great British Bake Off. With a velvety smooth texture and a luxurious rich and creamy topping, they would be a beautiful ending to any dinner.
And what’s best to serve them with? “A nice pot of tea of course! You have to have tea with cupcakes!”
You can take the lady out of Ireland . . .
INGREDIENTS, MAKES 12
2 eggs
150g softened butter
350g sugar
450g self-raising flour
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda
½ teaspoon of salt
250ml buttermilk
2 tablespoons red food colouring
1 teaspoon of vanilla essence
1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
12 cupcake cases
cream cheese frosting (combine a packet of cream cheese with ½ cup butter, 2 cups sifted confectionery sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla essence)
Valentine’s cake hearts to decorate
METHOD
Beat together sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well in between.
Sieve the dry ingredients into a bowl. Mix wet ingredients in a separate jug. Add alternate spoonfuls of each to mix, folding thoroughly after each addition until everything is combined.
Fill the dozen cases up to two-thirds with the mix and bake in a pre-heated oven at 150 degrees for 20 minutes.
When done, smother each one with a cream cheese frosting and sprinkle with lots and lots of love hearts!
